Anthony Davis continues to dominate as Team USA holds off Australia in win

While the rest of Team USA looked awfully rusty, Anthony Davis was dominant once again in an exhibition game victory over Australia.

It may be July, but Anthony Davis is in postseason form.

For a second straight game, AD shined for Team USA and looked every bit the best player on the court despite still coming off the bench. On Tuesday, it came against Australia where AD finished with 17 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks in 18 minutes.

Team USA came away victorious in Abu Dhabi against Australia, 98-92, but it wasn’t without a nervy fourth quarter. After trailing by 22 points in the third quarter, Australia stormed back in the final frame to close the game to as little as four points in the final seconds.

Team USA did just enough down the stretch, though, to hang on for the win. USA’s best players — LeBron James, Steph Curry, Davis and Jayson Tatum — did not close the game, though the court was still littered with stars, including Anthony Edwards.

And make no doubt about it, AD was the best player on the court on Tuesday. He led the team in both points and rebounds and was an absolute monster in the paint.

And as the biggest proof that AD really had things going, he even knocked down a corner 3-pointer off a feed from LeBron.

One of the more notable developments is that AD did play minutes with the starting lineup in the second half in place of Embiid. Both played limited minutes, but Davis did play two minutes more.

There are arguments to be made to start AD as he’s been clearly the best center. At the same time, playing in a unit with Jrue Holiday and Bam Adebayo is as suffocating a defensive lineup as you’ll find.

LeBron James, meanwhile, was pedestrian once again. He finished with 10 points, three rebounds and three assists in 21 minutes, going 3-8 from the field. As much as anyone else on this team, LeBron is working into game shape still at this point in the tour.

Team USA will be back in action on Wednesday against Serbia in Abu Dhabi. Tip-off is set for 9 a.m. PT.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.